Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and discussed the current events in Palestine.

During the meeting which was held at the UN headquarters in New York, Safadi stressed the need to mobilise effective international efforts to stop the Israeli attacks and violations in the occupied Palestinian territories and the aggression on the Gaza Strip, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

He also emphasised the necessity of meeting all the legitimate rights of Palestinians, foremost of which is their right to freedom and establishment of an independent and sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital, on the of June 4, 1967 lines, in accordance with international law and resolutions. 

The foreign minister highlighted the need to adhere to the the UN Charter and international legitimacy resolutions, and to oblige Israel, as the occupying power, to stop violating international law and end its attacks in occupied Jerusalem, its holy sites, and in the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories as well as the brutal aggression on the Gaza Strip.

For his part, Guterres called for a ceasefire between the Israelis and the Palestinians, an end to the forced displacement of Palestinians from East Jerusalem and illegal settlement activities, and action to meet the humanitarian needs in Gaza Strip.

Additionally, as part of the continuous efforts to continue coordination and consultations, Safadi also held a series of meetings and discussions with the foreign ministers of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Algeria, Tunisia, Turkey, Indonesia and the Maldives on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s session on Palestine.

The foreign minister also met with the US representative to the UN and the Security Council, underlining the urgency of achieving a lasting, comprehensive and a just peace based on the two-state solution in accordance with international law and the Arab Peace Initiative.